US, Taiwanese defence officials met in Alaska last week, says official
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WASHINGTON – US and Taiwanese defence officials held talks in Alaska last week, a US official said on Sept 4, in a move likely to anger China.
The US is Taiwan’s most important international backer and arms supplier, despite the absence of formal diplomatic ties.
China, which has never renounced the use of force to bring the island under its control, regularly describes Taiwan as the most important and sensitive issue in its relations with the US.
Mr Jed Royal, the top Indo-Pacific official at the US Department of Defence, met a senior Taiwanese national security official in Anchorage, the official said.
Chinese President Xi Jinping warned that the world was facing a choice between peace or war at a massive military parade in Beijing on Sept 3, flanked by Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in an unprecedented show of force. REUTERS
